Reference

Glossary

Every term used across the lessons, defined without jargon. Search it, or filter by the part of the field it belongs to.

66 terms

Abduction: Moving a limb away from the midline of the body.
Adduction: Moving a limb back toward the midline of the body.
AED: Automated external defibrillator. A portable device that reads heart rhythm and delivers a shock when a shockable rhythm is found.
Agonist: The muscle chiefly responsible for producing a given movement.
Alveoli: Microscopic air sacs at the end of the airways where oxygen and carbon dioxide trade places with the blood.
Anatomical position: Standing upright, facing forward, arms at the sides with palms forward. The reference pose for every directional term.
Antagonist: The muscle opposing the agonist, lengthening under control while the agonist shortens.
Anterior: Toward the front of the body.
Articulation: Another word for a joint — a place where two bones meet.
Atrophy: Loss of muscle size and strength from disuse, often seen after immobilization.
Avulsion fracture: A fracture where a tendon or ligament pulls a fragment of bone away from the rest of the bone.
Bilateral: Affecting or involving both sides of the body.
BOC: The Board of Certification, which administers the national certification exam for athletic trainers.
CAATE: The Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education, which accredits professional programs.
Cardiac output: The volume of blood the heart pumps each minute — heart rate multiplied by stroke volume.
Cartilage: Firm, flexible connective tissue. Articular cartilage caps the ends of bones so joint surfaces glide.
Concussion: A mild traumatic brain injury from a direct or transmitted force to the head. Loss of consciousness is not required.
Contusion: A bruise — bleeding within tissue caused by direct impact.
Crepitus: A grating, crackling, or popping sensation felt in injured tissue or bone.
Dislocation: Complete separation of the two bones forming a joint.
Distal: Farther from the trunk, along a limb. The ankle is distal to the knee.
Dorsiflexion: Pulling the top of the foot up toward the shin.
EAP: Emergency Action Plan — a venue-specific written plan naming roles, equipment locations, and access routes.
Eccentric contraction: A muscle producing force while it lengthens — lowering a weight slowly, or a hamstring controlling the leg at the end of a sprint stride.
Edema: Swelling caused by fluid collecting in tissue.
Etiology: The cause of an injury or condition.
Eversion: Turning the sole of the foot outward, away from the midline.
Extension: Increasing the angle at a joint — straightening the elbow.
Flexion: Decreasing the angle at a joint — bending the elbow.
Fracture: A break in the continuity of a bone.
HIPAA: Federal law protecting the privacy and security of health information.
Homeostasis: The body holding its internal conditions steady despite outside change.
Inferior: Below, or toward the feet.
Inflammation: The body's first response to tissue damage: redness, heat, swelling, pain, and loss of function.
Insertion: The muscle attachment on the bone that moves during a contraction.
Inversion: Turning the sole of the foot inward, toward the midline. The mechanism behind most ankle sprains.
Lateral: Away from the midline of the body.
Ligament: Tough connective tissue joining bone to bone and stabilizing a joint.
Mechanism of injury: How the injury happened — the forces and positions involved. Often the most useful clue in an evaluation.
Medial: Toward the midline of the body.
Origin: The muscle attachment on the bone that stays relatively fixed.
Palpation: Examining tissue by touch to locate tenderness, swelling, deformity, or warmth.
Plantarflexion: Pointing the toes down and away from the shin.
Point tenderness: Pain localized to one precise spot during palpation. Over bone, it raises suspicion of a fracture.
Pronation: Rotating the forearm so the palm faces downward.
Prone: Lying face down.
Proprioception: The sense of where your body is positioned in space without looking at it.
Proximal: Closer to the trunk, along a limb. The knee is proximal to the ankle.
Range of motion: How far a joint can travel, measured actively by the athlete or passively by a clinician.
Referral: Sending an athlete to a physician or other provider for care beyond the scope of the current evaluation.
Rehabilitation: The progressive program restoring range of motion, strength, balance, and sport-specific function after injury.
Return to play: The graded, criteria-based progression an athlete completes before being cleared for full participation.
Sagittal plane: The plane dividing the body into left and right. Forward and backward movement happens here.
Scope of practice: The set of services a credentialed provider is legally permitted to perform in their state.
Sprain: A stretch or tear of a ligament.
Standing orders: Written protocols from a supervising physician defining the care an athletic trainer may deliver.
Strain: A stretch or tear of a muscle or tendon.
Stress fracture: An overuse bone injury from repeated loading, where microdamage outpaces the bone's ability to rebuild.
Stroke volume: The amount of blood ejected from the left ventricle in one beat.
Subluxation: A partial dislocation, frequently returning to place on its own.
Superior: Above, or toward the head.
Supination: Rotating the forearm so the palm faces upward.
Supine: Lying face up.
Tendinopathy: Pain, swelling, and impaired function in a tendon from chronic overload.
Tendon: Tough connective tissue attaching muscle to bone.
Transverse plane: The plane dividing the body into top and bottom. Rotational movement happens here.